COLDWATER, ON- Third-generation competitor Jordan Latimer hit the first stumbling block of his 2014 Rookie of the Year campaign, on May 31st. Fresh off of a trio of impressive performances in weeks past, Latimer struggled through a particularly rough feature for his first sub Top-10 finish of the season.
“Growing up around the speedway, my grandfather always taught me that there are going to be nights like this”, offered Latimer in post-race debriefing. “Tonight wasn’t our night. But it definitely wasn’t because of a lack of effort”
Latimer took the green from outside of Row 5 in the 30-lap contest, joined at the tail end of the field by a bevy of perennial contenders looking to make their pilgrimage to the front of the pack.
“Any night in which you have that many fast cars starting at the back, it’s going to get a little wild”, reasoned Latimer. “We had a real tough time finding a rhythm tonight, because of the number of cautions through the first few laps”
“I can’t thank my spotter enough for looking out for me tonight”, continued Latimer. “We definitely could have been a lot worse off if we had been collected in something early on”
The 15-year old’s evening would take a turn for the worse shortly before the halfway mark, after contact with another competitor while battling for a spot in the top-5.
“I really wish I could have had that one back”, said Latimer. “I didn’t pit right away because I didn’t realize the tire was going down. By the time I came in, we were almost on the rim. My team did an awesome job of getting me back out, but by then we had lost a lot of track position”
“There’s no sense in getting mad about it”, continued the former Karting standout. “As long as we’re learning, I’m happy. I’ll know better for next time. We’re still on top of the Rookie points, and the car’s in one piece. It’s tough not to be happy with that”
Jordan Latimer’s 2014 Rookie of the Year bid is made possible thanks to KICX 106 FM, The DOCK 104.1, A/C Electric, Creetures Designs of Orillia, T&C Construction & Welding, Progressive Waste Solutions, Cookstown Auto Parts, Tax$mart of Orillia, Get Jack @ Re/MAX, Krueger Electric, K&K Racing Karts,Kitchen Tire and Shepherd Trucking.
The Ridge Road Racing team will return to action this Saturday, June 7th at Barrie Speedway. Gate times and ticket prices are available at www.BarrieSpeedway.com
Be sure to check out the JL Motorsports page on Facebook, and follow Jordan on Twitter @LatimerJordan.
By Spencer Lewis (@itsspencerlewis)
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